Sophomore Kaitlyn Klampert decided nothing would stand in her way at her achieving her life goals. She survived through a surgery for Cerebral Palsy that made her have to learn how to walk all over again, and now she will compete for the title of International United Miss Junior Teen.

The Diagnosis

At a young age, Klampert was diagnosed with Spastic Diplegia Cerebral Palsy. It is neurological condition that permanently affects muscle control and coordination. People with this condition have increased muscle tone, which leads to stiff or tight muscles.

Once she was 8, her parents told her of a surgery to treat this condition and that she would have the opportunity to be treated. She underwent heel, cord, and hamstring lengthening at Shriners Hospital in Springfield, Mass. The surgery would improve her ability to walk and move independently.

The surgery was a big event in her life. Most of her family was right with her to show their love and support.

The process was long and painful, but she doesn’t regret it at all. “Right when I woke up after the surgery in the hospital I was in excruciating amounts of pain. Then I had to spend six months in recovery in a wheelchair and wearing leg braces while I learned how to walk again. However, the thought that I was on a journey to recover pushed me to get through it all,” Klampert said.

Klampert is thankful that Shriners Hospital was able to perform the procedure. “I am thankful they were able to do the surgery because I know that not all types of Cerebral Palsy can be treated by surgery.”

Klampert is now a Shriners Ambassador and returns to visit the hospital regularly. She helps to plan fundraisers and events at the hospital. Recently she helped plan a Chili Cook Off Fundraiser and she is already beginning to formulate ideas for the next fundraiser. Because of her work there, she already has more than 500 community service hours as a sophomore.

The Pageant

One day Klampert received an invitation in the mail inviting her to compete in the National American Miss Pageant. It was anonymous and didn’t include a name. Klampert’s mother did research on it and verified that it was an authentic competition.

“I was kind of shocked because I wasn’t expecting it. To this day we still don’t know who the invitation was from. I was excited though because I was about to try something new,” Klampert said.

At 10, Klampert decided to enter the pageant. She enjoyed it so much that she decided to go on to compete in other pageants. Recently, Klampert competed in International United Miss Connecticut where she won the title International United Miss Connecticut Junior Teen.

“Me and four other girls stood waiting as they called each runner up,” she recalled They started by announcing the girl that placed fifth and eventually they called the girl who had placed second. Before, they called my name I realized that I was the only one that they had not called yet, and there was only one place left and that was first.”

Klampert will go on to compete for the title of International United Miss Junior Teen from July 14 – 20 in Galloway, N.J. This pageant and organization means much to Klampert. “There’s a bunch of organizations out there but this one is amazing because they care so much about the girls. It’s not about your beauty, but about who you are as a person,” said Klampert.

If she wins she will get prizes such as a rhinestone trimmed satin embroidered sash, a flower bouquet, a crown, a crown case, a cash award of $1,000, a trip to Washington D.C, New York City, and Walt Disney World.

The week will consist of several rounds. One of the rounds is called introductions, where contestants stand in front of an audience and they get 30-40 seconds to tell the audience their name, where they’re form, and any other information about them.

There is a round called the interview round. Contestants will be interviewed and asked more in depth questions about what they said during their introduction.

Another round is the high-fashion wear. Contestants are given the opportunity to wear whatever they want and model for the audience.

Lastly, there is a round called formal wear. Contestants wear a dress or suit that makes them feel confident. The dress can be whatever length the contestant chooses, as long as they feel comfortable in it.

Klampert’s favorite round is the introduction round. “I enter the round with a confident mindset so while I’m giving my introduction I am laid back and ready to perform.”

There’s a lot of work that goes into competing in this pageant and Klampert is already getting prepared for July. She is doing things such as picking out an outfit for each round, writing her introduction, and memorizing it.

The Community’s Response

Klampert’s friends are very proud of her and all the successes she has had so far.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Snow has been friends with Klampert ever since they met at a summer camp in fourth grade. “I am proud of Kaitlyn because she is confident in the things that she does and doesn’t let things get in her way. She is also a good friend because she is supportive in what I am doing and encourages me to do the right things,” Snow said.

Sophomore Melody Barz has known Klampert since sixth grade. They met at Westside Middle School Academy where they starred in the production of “Aladdin Junior” together.

“I’m proud of Kaitlyn because of everything that she is able to do. Between high school and her personal life including parents, she’s got a lot going for her. I’m also proud of her just for the fact that she hasn’t changed into the typical high school snob. She stays true to herself which is quite difficult to do,” Barz said.

Klampert likes to keep very busy outside of school work. Besides volunteering at Shriners Hospital, she is in  Girl Scouts, involved in theater at DHS, and in the summer she is a counselor in training at the YMCA in Brookfield. She also does more volunteering at places like Ben’s Bells in Bethel and Ann’s Place in Danbury.

Klampert’s favorite class at DHS is English. “I like the new techniques I learn in English class because they help me put my thoughts and experiences into words.”

Klampert already knows what career path she wants to pursue. “I want to be an entertainment lawyer. I was exposed to this career because many of my family members are also lawyers.”

Overall, Klampert wants people to take away from her story that, “If you set your mind to something you can do anything. While people may think pageants are about wearing crowns and sashes, it isn’t. It’s about the title and what you do with it.”

On top of exceeding school records left and right, Malcolm Going has been invited to the prestigious Brooks PR Invitational in Seattle on June 15.

Going will attend the national event alongside the top high school runners in the country, at the University of Washington outdoor track. There are only a limited number of athletes that are eligible to participate, which is determined by their success during the track season. Everything is sponsored by the meet itself and all expenses are paid for so that all qualifying athletes are able to compete.

Upon first receiving the invitation, Going said “I was sitting in class and I got an Instagram DM from one of the coordinators telling me I was invited.” Instantly, he said he was thrilled at the news and looked forward to the journey.

Rob Murray, indoor and outdoor track coach, believes it was when Malcolm ran a 1:50.85 for the half mile at a meet against college athletes during the winter track season that prompted his invitation to the national event.

Murray spoke about the different types of runners and how most have certain strengths in a particular area—some have natural endurance and some have speed.

He described Malcolm’s unique talent: “What makes him a very good runner is that he can be our best short sprinter and our best for long distance. It’s almost like an inhumanistic range that fits his profile, very competitive and very balanced.”

Going’s training will now shift to focus on building up speed workouts as opposed to long distance in preparation for the meet.

In addition to track, Going is involved many other activities like the National Honors Society and Peer Leadership, a program which aims to strengthen leadership qualities among individuals and to practice community service. By participating in other extracurriculars, Going creates a balance of the social aspect of his life that can help manage the pressure that comes with the track.

That being said, having a successful track career has been Going’s main focus. He said that he primarily feels excited before meets and only starts to experience nerves and stress a few hours before a race, but he handles it well and can still perform.

Going has proved to have excellent performance in both track and cross country, winning New England’s seven times, coming third in nationals, and first in the relay his junior year. During indoor track season, Going finished third in the country in the 800.

Going has worked very hard throughout his high school career to improve his times and gain respect within the team. He was named captain for both indoor and outdoor track as well as cross country.

“ He is a very good leader, there is a strong presence about him that people just kind of follow. He can relate to any type of person,” Murray said.

Malcolm will be running for American University in Washington, DC. after graduating in June. “ I am excited but I am still finishing everything off this year. Once the summer comes I will be able to focus more on college stuff.”

It may of been their first time participating in the Connecticut History Day competitions, but members of the school’s NSSHS chapter held their own and returned home with several prizes.

The nine teams of students — all members of the National Social Studies Honor Society — qualified for states, three competed, and one, while it didn’t place, won a “World War I History Award.”

Ann Tucci, head of the Social Studies Department and adviser to its honor society, is not discouraged, though, and is confident DHS will field a team that will “shine as historians and make it to Nationals one day.”

Faith Thomas and her teammates including Ana Dela Cruz, Valerie Fox, Laura Snow and Elizabeth Antedomenico won 2nd place in the Senior Group Exhibit of “Mutiny and Murder: Anastasia and the Bolsheviks.”

Thomas, a junior, said the competition was a “great learning experience where we applied our knowledge from school into our projects.”

She said the process of collaborating with her team was “beneficial towards how well our project did in the competition,” which she described as a “great pathway” for NSHSS and other students who wish to apply their historical skills at a competitive level.

Allyson Vecchia-Spooner, junior, worked with Sarah Barta and Caitlin Van Tronk on their entry, “The Triumph and Tragedy of Sybil Ludington,” and won 3rd place in the Senior Group Website category.

Working with the website gave them the opportunity to connect “a modern concept of technology to something historic.”

“History is something that comes naturally to me and to my horizon, which is why I enjoyed constructing this presentation altogether,” Vecchia-Spooner said.

Senior Jarod Rodriguez was among the 1st-place winners in Senior Group Performance. He teamed with Montez Osbey, Andrew Philbin, Gabriel Dos Santos, and Malcolm Going for an examination of the hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials.

“The thing is we were the only performance group in our grade, so automatically we moved on. However, we tried hard regardless because we wanted to have fun,” Rodriguez said. “I think that’s why our Salem Project successful. We weren’t afraid to perform and along with our research we were confident regardless if we had to face other groups.”

Tucci said the students started by selecting a historical topic that relates to an annual theme, which for 2019 was “Triumph and Tragedy.” Students then conduct research using libraries, archives, museums, and oral history interviews.

Students analyze and interpret their findings, draw conclusions about their topics’ significance in history, and create final projects that demonstrate understanding of their work.

These projects are entered into a series of competitions, from the local to the national level, where professional historians and educators evaluate them.

Courtesy of Jarod Rodriguez
First-place winners at the Connecticut History Day regionals.

Tucci said that the main intention of History Day is to expand on the “historical analysis students conduct on topics that range from historic to modern times,” and that it “gives students a more relatable platform of what’s happening around the world.” In turn, the competition helps to raise the status of the NSSHS Club. It is now required as a club member to compete in the event.

Tucci said since this was the first year for students in the competition the main goal for this year’s tournament was to receive “feedback from experienced educators and community members.” For those reasons a “run through” was hosted during Flex in which students experienced “a mock judging” of their projects.

In regard to future initiatives for the club, Tucci said she wants to “expand the program as part of the club and pilot how we can include more student historians in the senior division.”

She said she looks forward to competing next year when veteran club members will “have the option of recruiting other students to compete and be their peer mentor or compete themselves.”

Court visitation program

In other Social Studies news, Tucci reports that more than 150 Hatters this year have had the opportunity to tour the Danbury Superior Court system and learn about the local and state judicial system through a program between schools and attorneys.

The Connecticut Bar Association, through its Connecticut Court Visitation Program, has taken 93,000 students statewide on the tours since the program’s inception in 1980. According to Superior Court Judge Hope Seeley, chair of the court Visitation Program Committee, this year “more than 2,100 students took 75 tours in our court houses.”

Tucci signed up the high school for the popular program in which volunteer members of the CBA host the students. Tucci said the visits serve two purposes:  “The students have the opportunity to witness and experience the way the justice system functions, and it offers students a look at a variety of careers that are available in the court system.”

During this semester there have been five organized court visits from DHS students.

“Civic engagement is a necessary skill and this program is a wonderful start,” in developing “informative, productive and alerted citizens,” Tucci said.

Tucci said she and her teachers are building a collaborative relationship with the CBA and Danbury attorney Wendy Grispin who organizes the visits, helps with meets and greets with the judges, and conducts the tours.

Social Studies teacher Christine Riter said the tour was “very informative and a great way for students to see how what they learn in class works in the actual court system.”

Students and faculty were able to, as Riter describes it “ask questions to [the] judges, lawyers and other court staff.” They were also able to understand the feeling of sitting in the jury box, and see the holding center for defendants who have not been released on bail or who are currently in the jail system.

During one visit the students, with the judge’s permission, were able to witness the jury selection process.

Social Studies teacher Michelle Passarelli said she and her students enjoy the tours, and now with a CBA volunteer taking them around, they get access to such places as the courthouse law library.

Passarelli recalled an interesting moment for the teachers and students when in a proceeding “a sovereign citizen [claimed to the judge] that they were their own country,” and then the person became “argumentative with the judge and the prosecution, and had to be thrown out of the court.”

Tucci said she is hopeful the visits will spark an interest among students and that some may conclude, “ ‘I’d like to be her or him one day.’ ”

After four years of hard work and constantly pushing herself to be the best she can possibly be, Ashley Schlemmer earned salutatorian of the graduating Class of 2019 after achieving a 4.766 GPA.

Before freshman year, Schlemmer would have never imagined that she would become salutatorian. However, when the class ranks came out freshman year she was surprised to see that all her hard work paid off because she was No. 4. She was determined to maintain her work ethic during the remaining years and finished high school in the salutatorian spot.

“I’m proud of Ashley because she puts 110 percent  into everything that she does and is a very humble person,” said Daiquan Thomas, senior and a friend to Schlemmer. “She is always there for her friends and can balance many things at once. She is a dedicated and consistent person and well deserving of this position.”

Throughout high school Schlemmer completed a total of six Advanced Placement courses including United States History, Literature and Composition, Biology,  Statistics, Language and Composition, and Psychology.

In addition, Schlemmer is active in the DHS community. She is a member of Key Club, Board of Governors, and National Honor Society. She tutors other students at Danbury Grassroots Academy and plays the violin in the Symphony Orchestra.

Throughout her time at DHS she has taken the time to develop bonds with her teachers including her Honors Algebra II teacher Marlene Caravakis. “Mrs. Caravakis is my favorite teacher at DHS because she continues to mentor me both in and out of school,” the salutatorian said. “I know I can always count on her for help, even years after having her in a classroom setting.”

Caravakis’ greatest memories of Schlemmer include all the conversations they would have whether it be class related, her future, her personal life, or just life in general.

“Out of my many years of teaching it is rare to come across a young woman with such perseverance and drive,” Caravakis said. “This is what assures me that Ashley will succeed in every aspect of her life.”  

Schlemmer values the knowledge that she learns in the classroom. “The content that I learn is more important to me than the grade I receive, which is why I took advantage of the AP courses offered at DHS,” she said. “I am constantly looking to absorb more and more information, especially in subjects that interest me, like psychology, math, and science. Nevertheless, my desire to learn consequently produces good grades.”

Caravakis has also taken notice of Schlemmer’s desire to learn. “Ashley has always displayed a passion for learning and a determination to succeed in all that she does. This determination has guided her to where she is today and will continue to mold her in her future.”

Schlemmer credits learning from failure as the reason she has been so successful learning. “In my freshman year English class, I performed poorly on a reading check quiz, yet still managed to improve and do well overall in the class. This instance taught me that you can always recover from failure and that one quiz/test does not define you as a student,” Schlemmer said.

In the fall, Schlemmer will attend Pace University in Pleasantville, N.Y. She plans to pursue a degree in psychology with the intention of becoming a mental health counselor.

“What an honor it is for Ashley to be ranked No. 2 in such a large class in the largest high school in Connecticut,” Caravakis said. “That says so much about Ashley. Ashley exemplifies this achievement and what it stands for in every way.”

There’s no doubt that Barkha Bhavsar gives everything her genuine effort and dedication. Just take a look at where she is now, valedictorian of the graduating Class of 2019.

With a GPA of 4.7974, Bhavsar has achieved her long-term goal of being No. 1 in her class, a goal which was conceived her freshman year. By her sophomore year, she went from No. 9 in her class to No. 1.

“She definitely puts a lot of pressure on herself to be perfect,” said senior Martine Bernard, a friend of Bhavsar. “She never wants to be seen as lazy or someone who doesn’t care.”

Throughout high school, Bhavsar challenged herself with a heavy course load of honors classes paired with a total of eight advanced placement courses, some of which include AP World History, AP Chemistry, AP Language and Composition, and AP Calculus BC.

Within the wide ranges of the courses she took, her favorite class throughout high school and was French. Her former French teacher, Patricia Villella, recognized her interest.

“She definitely was eager to learn. She was always grabbing on to every new thing we were learning,” Villella said.

Bhavsar’s interest can be captured in every class she takes. When prompted about her least favorite class, she decided to redefine least favorite to most difficult. “It’s not that I don’t like the content,” Bhavsar said. “My confidence will just drop in a difficult class. I think I doubt myself a lot.”

Despite doubting herself, Bhavsar speaks out. In her classes, she is described as a compassionate leader, and she doesn’t let her doubt hold her back. “She advocates for herself and is not afraid to question something if she thinks it needs to be questioned,” Villella said. “There really aren’t enough positive adjectives to describe her.”

Along with her academic strides, Bhavsar has made a prominent impact on the DHS community. She participated in student government all four years of high school as treasurer and secretary in addition to her participation in Upward Bound, National Honor Society, Model UN, prom committee, Board of Governors, and several academic honor societies.

“She’s very hard working and conscientious of everything she does,” said senior Ngoc Trinh, another friend of Bhavsar.

Both Trinh and Bernard have known Bhavsar throughout high school, and they acknowledge how Bhavsar has grown. Since her introverted freshman days, Bhavsar has acquired confidence and leadership skills from speaking opportunities that were given to her through her leadership positions. She is grateful for her growth, but one regret Bhavsar has is that she “wish[es she] had been more outspoken sooner.”

Bhavsar has also grown to love learning, and not just the satisfaction of perfect grades. She said, “Before when I wanted to be No. 1, it was about the grade. Now that I can see past the grade aspect, learning is more important to me.”

Bhavsar’s motivation to be No. 1 was self-driven, but in the end, it was also influenced by her compassion. “[My parents] don’t have their dream jobs, so I want an education to support them and be financially stable,” Bhavsar said. “It’s not me just at stake here, it’s my family.”

Villella sees Bhavsar’s compassion in her actions in school as well as through community service. “This young lady knows that you have to give and not always receive.”

In the shadow of Bhavsar’s academic and personal accomplishments, she has been accepted into Northeastern University in Boston, and plans on attending the university in the fall with a concentration in chemical engineering.

“She’s a great kid, a hard worker,” said Villella. “She does her best and does not settle for mediocre.”

A recognition ceremony for students who successfully completed the 2018-2019 AP Spanish Independent Study Program for English Learners (ELs) was recently held at the black box theater.

Students met after school for a total of 33 hours of direct instruction from teacher Soraya Bilbao, who began the program several years ago. Attendance at each of these study sessions was nearly 100 percent. All 19 students took the AP Spanish exam.

Since the launch of the program in 2015, 39 English Learners have taken the AP Spanish exam as an independent study and have met benchmark (attained a score of 3 or higher). This total does not include the 2018-2019 cohort as scores won’t be ready for release until summer).

With principal Dan Donovan on hand, the following students were recognized:

1. Aquino, Yaritza
2. Arias, Jasson
3. Beltran, Ronny
4. Campos Contreras, Grecia Maria
5. Coronel, Josseline
6. Duran Maldonado, Evelyn Steffanie
7. Falcon, Jacklyn
8. Galarza, Elizabet
9. Lopez, Edwin
10. Lopez, Katy
11. Moreno Bachon, Andrea Nicole
12. Ortiz Navarrete, Mia
13. Pena, Roberto
14. Penaranda, Elisa
15. Penaranda, Marlie
16. Penaranda, Mayra
17. Salinas, Juan Pablo
18. Sanango, Carolina (AP Class)
19. Yepez, Emily

DHS implemented a new schedule this year. This switch was from eight 45-minute periods to three 83-minute blocks and two 45-minute periods — flex and a skinny block. Now that the year is almost over, teachers, students, and administrators are weighing in on how it went.

Michelle Passarelli, a Social Studies teacher and chair of the teachers union’s Advisory to the Principal Committee, said she likes the fact that “classes are longer, and we can do more in class.”

Sophomore Brooke Stillman prefers block over the eight 45-minute periods. “It’s easier to manage the classes you’re in when you have more time to complete the work, and it allows more time to do your homework since the classes are only every other day,” Stillman says.

Under the past schedule of eight 45-minute periods, teachers typically took 5 minutes at the start and end of the period to do housework items such as check and assign homework, collect classwork, and take attendance. However, with 5 minutes from both ends of the period gone, that left 35 minutes for instruction and classwork time.

Juliane Armentano, an English teacher, and the union’s building chair, says that “When [the class] just had 45 minutes, it wasn’t enough time to get through a whole class discussion and talk about the multiple choice [questions] and explain how to improve.”

This was one of the reasons principal Dan Donovan switched to the block schedule, where there were 83 minutes per class, so teachers did not have to rush through the class to get through what they wanted to. “We’ve been thinking about block scheduling for around 10 years now,” he said.

Students, the administration and teachers have had to adjust to the new schedule. For teachers, this meant configuring lesson plans for the 83-minute classes, students had to adjust to sitting in a longer class, and the administrative side had to adapt to new teacher observation rules.

“It has been a little hectic for [the administrators] too because when they were going in to observe teachers they had more opportunities to do it [under the old schedule]. If I have an observation to go see a teacher, and then I miss it, I can’t just go in the next day, unlike last year,” Donovan says.

However, he added he believes that any scheduling issues will be resolved for next year.

“All the scheduling mishaps and flaws are fixed as of right now,” Donovan said, “but next year we’ll probably open a whole new set of mishaps, but I wouldn’t call them flaws, just things we have to figure out.”

Jonathan Schoelkolf, sophomore, says “I don’t like how some classes feel like they drag on forever, but I like we have more time to get projects done in groups.” Stillman agrees that the classes can be too long. “The periods are so excruciatingly long sometimes,” she says. “It’s so easy to get bored and lose interest if you’re being taught the same subject for almost 2 hours every period.”

One of the biggest complaints from teachers about the block schedule has been to the new approach to meeting contractually guaranteed prep time. Teachers under the old schedule had one period a day of planning time. They use this time to plan lessons, grade papers, contact parents, make copies and other miscellaneous tasks to help their teaching.

Now, it’s every other day, but it is supposed to add up to at least the same number of minutes under the old system. This means on the day of not having prep, the teachers have their duty and can wind up going practically all day without a break until their lunch wave.

Both Passarelli and Armentano, in their union roles, have heard from teachers all year long about the stress of the new schedule. Teachers say they feel physically and mentally exhausted on the days without prep time, and that even bathroom breaks are difficult to manage. In their interviews, they pointed out that they weren’t just speaking for themselves.

Passarelli says that “I don’t have my prep every day, so that’s been a huge adjustment, making sure I’m ready for the next class.” Armentano says that “because we’ve worked so hard all day, I’m just decompressing during that time. I think we might feel more relaxed or re-energized if we had a little more prep time. We lost the 45-minute period when we were able to eat [lunch time for teachers has been reduced to the state guarantee of 30 minutes] and then prep for 15 minutes.”

There were a few different things about the schedule that wasn’t ideal for teachers. Armentano said, “I know some of my colleagues come in and have periods 1 and/or 2 only on A days and then their B days are really heavy. I know that there are some people that have prep during period 3, which means your prep and lunch are put together, which is a huge chunk of time; you could leave campus if you wanted too, go out to grab a coffee or lunch and come back, whereas I only have about 40 minutes during the day during period 4.”

Donovan has a plan to fix that lack of prep time for next year’s schedule. “The new schedule we’re working on is going to give the teachers more prep time,” he said. “Instead of having seven periods, there will be eight, but I’m not going to give the teachers any more classes to teach, so they’ll have an extra block. Which we’re going to try and use that for co-planning time so that all of the English 1 teachers can meet during that period, something that we call PLC, or professional learning committees.”

Another change for the teachers was having 3 longer, 83-minute periods, but one 43-minute class at the end of the day; a skinny block. The district couldn’t afford to go with Donovan’s proposed full block schedule.

Donovan doesn’t like the skinny block because he thinks it “causes a lot of problems; no sciences can be in that and it changes how much time a teacher has. If you’re a teacher, and you’re teaching an English in a block, and then all of a sudden you have it in the skinny block, you have to plan completely different, so it causes some problems.

“We are investigating right now if we can get rid of it without putting [the students] in a bunch of study halls,” he continues. “That’s what holds us back. I don’t want a whole lot of people in a study hall. This year our study hall numbers are low; I like that, because it means that kids aren’t sitting around for 83 minutes. But if I can get kids more opportunities for classes, that I am going to try and do.”

Passarelli, who had never worked in a block schedule before, says that “while it has been a big adjustment for me, I don’t mind having [a block schedule]; it’s just that prep time, making sure I’m ready for every day is challenging.

“Also, what has been a big adjustment for me is just remembering what I did last class,” she continues, “which sounds so bizarre, but I have a lot of different classes that I teach. At the end of every period I have to literally write down where I left off so I know two days from now where we were.”

Meanwhile, Armentano is more accustomed to the way she went through her own high school day. “I like going to periods 1 through 8, same thing every day. I like that, I just do. I would be fine if we had kept the 45-minute schedule, but the block schedule is good, too. I get more focus time with my students.

Donovan is working on the new schedule with Freshman Academy principal Kris Davidson (both administrators have experience scheduling and running a full block schedule in the academy), and they are currently focused on figuring out the lunch waves.

“It’d be better if our cafeteria could hold more than 1,000 students because then we could just split the school into three, but it can’t,” Donovan said. “So we’re trying to work our way around that. Ever since we switched to the lunch waves, the school has been quieter. With lunches being held as a period, the whole school was moving around and it made a lot of noise. With the lunch waves, it’s only 700 or so students, which is much quieter.”

No matter how they configure the schedule, there will always be issues, whether it’s remembering what was done last class or having trouble completing an observation.

Armentano adds, “There is just never enough time in the day, no matter how we configure the schedule.”

Students give thumbs up to flex

Flex, an intervention and enrichment program by Enriching Students, was put into place by administration this year, and according to Donovan, has far exceeded his expectations.

Donovan learned about flex through its implementation in surrounding school districts. Noting its benefits, specifically to increasing grades and student-teacher communication, administration had no issue paying the $2 per student fee to access the software.

Despite persistent scheduling errors early-on, Donovan is satisfied with how flex has progressed  and how easily students and teachers adapted. Just last week, only a little over 100 students remained unscheduled, in a school of 3,100.

“That’s fantastic,” Donovan said.

The complaints from students are few, and most see its value and importance. The daily program replaced the weekly Advisory program that had been in place for years.

Claire Moreira, a junior, said “I like flex because it gives me a break in between classes to regroup and get more one-on-one help if I’m having any difficulties in class.”

While sophomore Ivan Yang agrees, he also enjoys flex from a social standpoint, saying it not only gives him an advantage to catch up on work, but also provides the option to hang out with friends.

Students are also appreciative that flex allows them to meet and work with group members they might be collaborating with on a class project.

Yang is also satisfied that flex replaced Advisory because, “We won’t be wasting our time, unlike Advisory last year where students were not able to seek help.”

Aidan Coleman, a junior, has one request. “I’d like to see students given the option to override a teacher scheduling them if they have a legitimate reason to do so,” he said.

Sophomore Audrey Hinh understands the purpose of flex, but not the need for Mentor Monday every week. “I believe meeting with our ‘Mentor Monday’ teachers every other week or less would be more sufficient, as everyone schedules themselves. Everyday during flex on Monday I don’t get anything done, because I’m not allowed to go anywhere else.”

Moreira would like to see “more fun classes, like the yoga one that we have.”

All three are goals Donovan aims to achieve next year. If flex runs smoothly as the new year begins, he plans to make Mentor Monday only the first and third Monday of each month, as well as letting students change their schedule themselves during the week. However, he remains wary of students taking advantage of that freedom. He also wants to budget money for enrichment, making sure there are funds to support any extension idea a teacher proposes.

Positive reviews also come from the teacher side. Joann Manes, a CP and Honors Chemistry teacher, loves they ways flex lets her interact with her students. “Flex allows the opportunity to work in smaller groups with the kids to really focus on where their needs are, so if they’re missing material they can make it up, and if they don’t understand material, I can support them with it,” she said.

She continued to say she’s seen an absolute improvement in grades. “Especially with block, it’s been helpful that they can catch up on periods missed that are actually double periods, which is important when making up a lab, a test, or an assignment.”

On the other hand, Manes expressed frustration at electronic use during her flex. “I don’t mind if they don’t have work in my class, or if they’re doing work in other classes, and I’m even willing to help them with that work, but I don’t want them on computers or phones playing games.”

An additional and larger issue she had is students showing up late to flex, or not showing up at all. Karen Robinson, a math teacher, expressed similar frustration at this issue, as well as students coming unprepared and not wanting to work.

She said, “A student will come to my flex saying, ‘Oh I don’t have you for class today so I didn’t bring my stuff.’ They asked to come to my flex to get work done and we were going to use their notebook as a jumping off ground with their materials, their notes, their practice problems, but they don’t have any of that. It puts more pressure on me as a teacher.”

Donovan also wants to tighten down on the issue of kids not utilizing flex. Already, there is a code in flex attendance called “Present not Active,” so the student can be questioned as to why they weren’t involved in any work. He said he wishes flex could be interfaced with Powerschool, and administration is looking into a program that does so, called “Clever,” but currently, there is no way to regulate or discipline absenteeism in flex.

Robinson further said, “I can’t have students scheduling me to work with me, and then not wanting or being able to work. I have too many students having too much difficulty in my classes to lose any slots. I need those slots for other students, and even then I still find myself running out of space.”

Donovan said “Math and English are capped at 15 because they’re our hardest subjects. If we  increased it to 30, there is no way for teachers to be able to help everybody, but 15 allows for concentration on each student. And if a teacher wants to, they can override their max.”

Administration also set a rule that teachers with any students under a 75 in their class need to be booked, but Robinson also finds this problematic. “I have 130 students, over half of them are students with special needs. With a majority of my kids struggling in class, I find myself booking only under a 70.”

Robinson believes “Flex simply isn’t enough to assist the students that routinely don’t perform well.”

Donovan also wants to correct any “teacher operator error.” He has noticed “if a teacher needs a student but they’re booked for someone else, that teacher will re-book that student. We need to get better at that.”

Robinson agrees. “Teachers are fighting over kids, and that has to stop,” she said.

To the structure of flex, there will be no changes. “When we begin next year, we’ll shut down self scheduling for a bit, get the freshman into it, the teachers reacclimated to it, but we’re for sure going to start looking into what actually goes on in flex,” Donovan said.

The administration has a Memo of Understanding agreement with the teacher’s union that teachers do not have to prepare for flex, nor teach. They are to help students who don’t understand a concept or skill, much like they would if a student stayed after school for extra help. Administration cannot evaluate a teacher during flex, but can check on compliance with the MOU.

“Flex was put into effect with student success in mind,” Donovan explained. “If we’ve increased a students willingness to ask for help, and allowed them to receive the help they need, then we as teachers have accomplished everything we aim to do.”

Five teachers are saying goodbye to DHS this year: Marlene Caravakis, Mary Veach, Pat Vilella, Robin Pietz and Rocky Wetzel are retiring. Three of them responded to a hattersherald.com‘s request to participate in our retirement roundup. Sue Gudim, a main office secretary, Florencia Carter of the attendance office, and longtime maintenance man Mike Morrison have also retired. We wish all of them the best.

Explore a list of the top 20 graduating seniors from the class of 2019.

Five teachers are saying goodbye to DHS this year: Marlene Caravakis, Mary Veach, Pat Vilella, Robin Pietz and Rocky Wetzel are retiring. Three of them responded to a hattersherald.com‘s request to participate in our retirement roundup. Sue Gudim, a main office secretary, Florencia Carter of the attendance office, and longtime maintenance man Mike Morrison have also retired. We wish all of them the best.

Subject: Math

Years at DHS: 39 years teaching public high school; 19 years teaching at DHS.

College: Attended Western Connecticut State University, received a bachelor’s in Education/Math; a master’s degree, and 6-year degree in math.

Things I will miss:  I will first miss my students. The diverse background is why I switched to come to Danbury High because I love the different ethnicities. Since I’ve invested my whole life to teaching and given my whole life to the students, I have a lot of things that are rewards to me. One of them is watching them grow in math as teens, and then they transform. The excitement and the interest that they have in math and in me, makes me very happy. The “Ah-ha” moment when they master concepts. I’m also going to miss what makes each student so unique. I will miss the camaraderie that I have with the students. I will miss the shared experiences, the energy, and all the drama that comes along with teaching high school. I will miss the way that I have become so important in [the students’] lives in their most crucial years. As for the teaching aspect, I will miss teaching and exploring new ways to present lessons and delve into the subject area in different ways. I will miss the energy that it takes to get the students interested, and I will miss my colleagues and further experiences and their friendship.

Things I won’t miss: I won’t miss standardized testing, demands, or the time taken away from teaching. I’m not sure what else to say; I’m going to miss everything. I mean honestly it’s very bittersweet for me because it’s all I’ve done since I was 21.

Favorite memory of DHS: When I take a student that has no interest in my subject area, and I see them grow through the four years and get scholarships and succeed. By far one of them was that he actually became a math teacher because of me.

Advice to a new teacher: My advice is “Don’t listen to people complain about the job” because people complain about any job anywhere. You have to make your own way, and you have to do it for you and what’s right for your students. So I would just say, “Pave your own path, listen to good advice but don’t listen to people complain about it because you have to start somewhere and have that refreshed attitude year through year.”

Retirement plans: I’m going to watch the love-of-my-life, my grandson; I hope to still tutor and keep my finger in education, and travel with my husband.

The new standalone Freshman Academy — known as G building — has earned an A in its first year of hosting 9th-graders and their faculty teams.

Kris Davidson, academy principal, said he was pleased with the outcome. “I think this year went really well,” Davidson said. “We tried hard to have every freshman experience the new building at some capacity.”

Pros from Davidson’s point of view is that “the school has a ton more space, the building is new, cleaner, and nicer. The science rooms are also really state of the art and the new gym is awesome.”

With pros come cons, and Davidson recognizes that there are issues that need to be adapted to or resolved. Despite having more space, the G building was not big enough to accommodate all the freshmen teams and even Davidson, whose office remains on D4.

The fact that he “is not over there in the building is tough,” Davidson said. “The walls look kind of bare, which is something that we will be working on by getting some murals up on the walls, some artwork to spruce it up a little bit, and we need some signage saying ‘G-building, this way’ or ‘D-building this way,’” Davidson said.

Word had spread that there was a leak in the ceiling on G3 and when asking teachers within the building to identify issues the leak was a common topic. In regards to this leak, “The school has a flat roof and there is flashing. Therefore, if the flashing lifts up, then the water ultimately ends up getting underneath,” Davidson explains.

However, Davidson reassures that the matter is currently being taken care of and both he and Principal Dan Donovan are well aware of the damage in need of repair.

Teachers have taken the renovation responsibilities into their own hands by putting up a poster of a large sea turtle on the wall in attempts to cover the leak damage on G3. Freshman science teacher Jared Cowden shares that “There was some leaky water in the printer room but I think that is just new building things that are getting addressed. I don’t see any real cons to the building itself or how it’s designed.”

Many of the team teachers are pleased overall. Cowden has been pleased with the new equipment saying “the mounted projectors are really nice and I like how the tables go up and town.”

Cowden has also been pleased with the modern lighting features, and says that “the climate control is nice now that there’s air conditioning.” D4, where the academy used to be, is known for being a sweat box in the hotter months.

However, Cowden adds, “I don’t know if we need to be trained better on how to control [the AC system] or if it’s controlled from a main system, but it kind of has a mind of its own.”

Science teacher Nat Carnevalla said he likes working in the building. “I think it’s a nice building and the air conditioning is good. As we get into the summer months, it gets harder and harder for us to sit for an hour and forty minutes in hot classrooms.”

Cowden said he is hoping something can be done about fixed seating arrangements in the science rooms because it makes pairing/group activities difficult to organize. Similarly, “not all rooms have chairs with wheels, but many of the rooms ended up having chairs with wheels and that’s really not good or safe for science labs,” the science teacher said.

Krisanthia Panaelidis, English I teacher, said she is happy with the tight relationships that come with being in the new building. The G-building helps “the freshmen to have a sense of unity and belonging as they transition to high school,” Panaelidis says.

As a member of Team 1, she adds that “we’re all neighbors, and the students as well as the other teachers on my team love [being so close together].”

The one main concern for science teacher Meghan Bresson is not “so much a con of the building itself, it’s just more so there’s not enough space.” “I feel like we are separated from the rest of our department and some freshman teachers didn’t get to come to the g-building so we have two teams in each subject that are [separated between buildings],” Bresson shares.

However, “the pro is definitely having one area where all of the freshman can be because it was separated [more in the previous years] and science was in a completely different building.” Therefore, “it’s nice to have a team in one area. I also think that it’s easier for the students to navigate,” says Bresson.

Math teacher Amanda Peterson shares that she has been quite happy in the academy. “Beautiful new building,” she said. “I love the new technology and it’s nice to have a wall-mounted projector.”

As for the students, freshmen seemed to be quite pleased with the way the building and classrooms have played out this year.

For Team 2 freshman Abby Hamilton, being in the G building has gone well. The smaller environment has benefited Hamilton in making many new friends. She says that a great thing about the  building is how students are able to “meet new people from other middle schools” and form new bonds.

Freshman Greg Parker from Team 5 also speaks highly of the building, saying “I don’t really have any cons about this year in the building. The building was built extremely well judging from the classrooms I’ve been in and I’ve enjoyed being in the G wing.”

On the con side of things, however, Hannah Kwarteng from Team 4 acknowledges the fact that it has been quite frustrating and “inconvenient that the bathrooms in the G building always seem to be locked.” Kwarteng also shares similar opinions with Cowden regarding the climate control saying, “The freshman building was always cold, even throughout winter,” and feels as though the AC and heating controls should be modified.

In preparation for the asbestos abatement this summer in the third and fourth floors of C wing, principal Dan Donovan is asking teachers to box up loose items that cannot be stored in fixed cabinets.

Donovan on Friday sent the email directive to faculty — science, business, special education, and English — that occupy the two floors. The same goes for the school store and mail room.

The abatement is a result of a damaging and costly water pipe rupture that occurred earlier this year affecting both floors. Many older schools throughout the country have asbestos wrapped around piping to serve as insulation and as a fire retardant. It’s fibers, however, if inhaled, can cause lung disease so many precautions are taken.

All countertops and tops of cabinets are to be cleared of loose items, and head custodian Billie Anderson will provide boxes. All loose furniture will be moved to an area outside of the abatement, Donovan said.

Any furniture or fixtures attached to the floor will stay. Any fixed cabinets can be used for storage of loose items. The more items that can be stored in fixed cabinets, the less people will have to box up, Donovan said.

As part of the abatement, all classroom and closet doors will be removed on Thursday, June 20. Any items in the closet should be boxed up and the custodial crew will store them in another location, Donovan explained.

The glass cases in the school store will be moved for the abatement. All items in the school store will need to be boxed up and stored in a secure location.

Also, crews will remove the “knee walls” in the old computer lab in C-3 before the abatement begins.

The contractor, Haz-Pros Inc. based in West Hartford, will begin putting up the containment on C-4 on Monday, June 24.

“I expect the abatement to be completed by the end of July,” Donovan said. “No students or children under the age of 18 will be allowed in the school during the abatement with the exception of E Wing.”

Editor’s note: Soraya Bilbao is an EL teacher who regularly contributes to this column space.

I consider myself a creative person. I attribute this to the many bedtime stories mom used to tell my sister and me when we were kids. Each night, we fell asleep dreaming of far away kingdoms, princesses, and enchanted forests.

Her stories fueled my childhood imagination, which for the most part, was a good thing. Unfortunately, at times, it landed me in compromising situations.

Growing up, one of my little sister’s most cherished childhood possessions, besides her Cabbage Patch doll, was her Barbie doll. I don’t remember which exact doll she had, but like a newly formed appendage of a starfish, Barbie was a permanent fixture in my sister’s hands.

One day, while my mom and sister went out to do some errands, I decided to surprise my sister by treating Barbie to a full day at the spa (a.k.a., our bathroom).

The idea of performing a complete makeover on Barbie pleased me, but the idea of surprising my sister pleased me even more. A random act of kindness — Oprah would be so proud!

So while mom and my sister were out and about, I got down to business.

A facial, a manicure and pedicure, a detoxifying seaweed wrap, and an aromatherapy massage. I locked myself in the bathroom and with tons of imagination, and heaps of soap and water in an overflowing bathroom sink. I envisioned Barbie enjoying some well-deserved time away from Ken.

Now, Barbie was ready for her last spa treatment; a wash and blow out.

I lathered up her hair with shampoo, washed, rinsed, and toweled it dry. I picked up her little Barbie doll hairbrush and turned on our human-sized blow dryer.

And here’s where things got somewhat off track.

As soon as I turned on the blow dryer, Barbie’s long golden tresses shriveled up to little burnt plastic balls of nothing.

Holy cannoli! What had I done!

“Oh no, oh no, oh no!” I cried to myself as I tried combing out her hair. This, of course, just led to detached blobs of burnt plastic littering the bathroom floor.

I tried snipping some of the clumps with a pair of scissors, hoping that I might be able to salvage something, anything! Unfortunately, this just resulted in the creation of a new type of Barbie doll: Burnt Hair and Bald Spots Barbie.

I was devastated. In my eagerness to do something nice for my sister, I had obliterated her prized doll.

I have no recollection of what happened after my mom and sister returned home, but I’m sure it involved many apologies, some serious explaining to mom, and no TV for a month.

On another occasion, while we were still living in Ecuador, my sister, cousin, and I attempted to climb down from the second story window of our house by way of a makeshift rope comprised of whatever article of clothing we happened to pull out from the closet and tie together.

I’m not 100 percent sure, but I have an inkling that I may have been the one to suggest we engage in such leisurely activity. “Hey guys, enough of the coloring books. What do you say we repel down the side of the house?”

We had it all planned out. My cousin would hold on to one end of the so-called rope, which she had thrown over the second floor bedroom window. My sister would repel down the side of the house while my 7-year-old self would wait for her out on the backyard, just in case she needed catching.

We even conducted quality testing of the rope to ensure it would withstand my sister’s weight. We accomplished this by throwing a stuffed animal out the window.

Don’t forget, we were using our imagination. Therefore, to us, the toy didn’t just fall haplessly to the ground, but rather, climbed down safely.

I’m not making any of this up. This all really happened. Lucky for us, mom and grandma happened to walk in on us just as we were about to hoist my sister onto the windowsill.

I have no recollection of what happened after my mom and grandma caught us in the act, but I’m sure it involved many apologies, some serious explaining to mom, and no TV for a month.

On the bright side, while the application of my childhood imagination resulted in more groundings that I care to count, it did make for a wonderful childhood.

Thank you, Mom.

Here are the seniors who received Senior Recognition Awards on Monday night in the auditorium. CTE teacher Sterling Miller produced video salutes from teachers as a way of introducing each award winner.

Aaditi Mehta

Aenjhielou Marquez

Aileen Vega

Ali Ceylan

Alisha Nagarsheth

Alyssa Scappaticci

Andrea Gonzalez-Mendoza

Andrew Valente

Angelina Campos

Angelina Fajardo

Ann Palomino

Ashley Schlemmer

Ashley Corrie

Barkha Bhavsar

Benjamin Pereira

Bryan Lojano

Cassandra Lanson

Catarina Silva

Chayse Ramos

Christopher Adamski

Christopher Janzel Gonzalez

Colin Coe

Daisy Salinas Jara

David Wang

Dennise Rodas Toledo

Elizabeth Hadden

Emily Bogues

Endy Macancela

Erin Maida

Erin-Marie Smith

Esteisy Reynoso

Feona Jodin

Gabriel Vieira

Gabrielle D’Ostilio

Gabrielli Pereira

Grace Lange

Hazen Dixon

Humayra Meem

Jacob Laham

James Lukasik

Jasmely Rodriguez

Javon Hernandez

Jaymeejoy Alfonzo

Jenna Coladarci

Jennifer Schneider

Jerry Galarza

Jessica Pereira

Joanna Wenchell

Juan Casanova

Justin Solipa

Kaley Luk

Kayla Downs

Kayla Tolliver-Van Wright

Keira Reisert

Kevin Remache

Kiara Kaltschnee

Kyle Berger

Lauralee Cothias

Lauren Ifkovits

Lauren Melody

Lauren Moore

Liam Jakobson

Lucas Amaral

Madelin Nunez

Madison Read

Malcolm Going

Maria DeSouza

Martine Bernard

Mayerly Remache

Megan Cabuyaban

Megha Patel

Melanie Rivas

Micah Chen

Michelleann Sterling

Mike Remache

Monica Jefferson

Montez Osbey

Natalee Seipio

Natalie Preveza

Ngoc Trinh

Nicholas Marrero

Nicholas Pietrafesa

Nicholas Veloso

Olivia Taylor

Oona Furey

Palak Bhavsar

Priya Bhavsar

Rameezah Ahmed

Raymond Pinto

Riley Duhamel

Riley Moore

Rock-Edens Lamour

Rohiny Perez Racua

Sabrina Almeida

Sabrina Quilambaqui

Sarah Green

Sebastian Arreola

Shannon Ahearn

Shannon Rose

Shivam Patel

Shriya Chinthak

Susana Almeida

Tiffany (Hayden) Pham

Tiffany Izzo

Ty’Lynn Ith

Viviana Campoverde

Yasmin Macancela

Explore a compiled list of our 2019 graduating seniors and where they will be in the next years. We lead off with a list of one graduate, one school. Below this list, click on the school seal (or military, travel, and employment) for the names of graduates.

Adames, Lusi–Monroe College

Adamski, Christopher–Siena College

Ayala, Jonathan–College of the Holy Cross

Bandaru, Rishita–University of New England

Basli, Ashley–Flagler College

Bellantoni, Lucio–Rollins College

Bernard, Martine–University of Pennsylvania

Bowden, Azariah–Eastern Nazarene College

Braca, Luke–St. John’s University

Burton, Denali–Nichols College

Caldwell, Ryan–Springfield College

Campos, Angelina–Albertus Magnus College

Campoverde, Viviana–Massachusetts College of Art and Design

Castillo, Yaritza–Fashion Institute of Technology

Cefaloni, Jordan–Hofstra University

Chansouk, Nevaeh–Franklin Pierce University

Chen, Micah–Cornell University

Chintak, Shriya–Rutgers University

Coker, Jurnee–Susquehanna University

Coladarci, Jenna–Suffolk University

Corrie, Ashley–Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts

Croxford-Brock, Elizabeth–Albertus Magnus College

Custodio, Angelyna–The Culinary Institute of America

Czap, Jordan–The University of Scranton

D’Ostilio, Gabrielle–Emerson College

Dachenhausen, Tyler–The University of Northwestern Ohio

DeSousa, Thiago–American International College

Dhaliwal, Vikram–The Culinary Institute of America

Diaz, Marcelo–Mitchell College

Downs, Kayla–University of Vermont

Genao, Alanah–College of Mount Saint Vincent

George, Benjamin–Wentworth Institute of Technology

Gherna, Lauren–University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Gottwals, Nathan–Drake University

Grant, Peyton–Manhattanville College

Heady, Taylor–Marywood University

Hefferon, Joelene–Elon University

Heidan, Abigail–Eckerd College

Hernandez, Javon–Coastal Carolina University

Herrera, Arsenio–Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology

Hope, Justin–Manhattan College

Hopkins, Ronell–Husson University

Hornik, Nathaniel–Seton Hall University

Jacobs, Alonna–Mercy College

Jakobson, Liam–Iona College

Jallow, Malamin–Piedmont College

James, Marson–Anne Arundel Community College

Jara, Daniel–Fisher College

Jorge, Kayque–Johnson & Wales University

Kaltschnee, Kiara–Trinity College

Kelly, Shaquana–Hampton University

Lane, Keira–Stony Brook University

Lange, Grace–Boston University

Lukasik, James–Hartwick College

Maida, Erin–Fitchburg State University

Markovitz, Alexandria–Fordham University

Marrero, Dennis–University of Maine

Maxwell, Royce–Eckerd College

Mcbrian, Elizabeth–London College of Fashion

Melody, Lauren–Rhode Island College

Moore, Demia–Curry College

Morales, Tommy–Lincoln Technical Institute

Morrell, Annabella–Lasell College

Nunez, Ivan–Lincoln Technical Institute

Oleshko, Anton–Arizona State University

Paris, Olivia–Southeastern University

Parmely, Nicolle–Santa Fe College

Partenio, Harrison–Hofstra University

Pena, David–The Culinary Institute of America

Peralta, Arnold–Lincoln Technical Institute

Pereira, Jessica–Norwich University

Philbin, Andrew–Franklin Pierce University

Phonchamreun, Polo–Lincoln Technical Institute

Pinto, Raymond–Bryant University

Preveza, Natalie–Union College

Pudelka, Lauren–Purchase College

Reisert, Keira–La Salle University

Rizk, Sofia–Kent State University

Rogers, Hailey–SUNY College at Cobleskill

Sabene, Matthew–Pace University

Scappaticci, Alyssa–Pennsylvania State University

Schlemmer, Ashley–Pace University

Shukla, Devansh–New York Film Academy

Smith, Erin-Marie–University of South Carolina

Solimine, Manhattan College

Sterling, Michelleann–Merrimack College

Thoum, Justin–Lincoln Technical Institute

Tucci, Hannah–University of Pittsburg

Veloso, Nicholas–Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Villalona, Daniel–Siena College

Waterbury, Dean–Eckerd College

Wenchall, Joanna–North Carolina State University

Zheng, Steven–Wentworth Institute of Technology

In front of a raucous crowd at Danbury High School, the Hatters Football team opened their home season with a convincing 42-0 win over the Westhill Vikings. For the Hatters, it was their first home game, due to the track construction. 

For the Hatters, they were led by Artez Taft who had three touchdowns, including a rushing touchdown. He caught two touchdown passes from Sophomore Jackson Ciccone. While Malachi Hopkins ran for two touchdowns and Patrick Rosetti capped it off with a 17 yard pass to Bernie De La Cruz in the 3rd. 

Coach Augie Tieri was delighted by the play of his Sophomore Quarterback: “I was especially impressed with the performance of Jackson Ciccone. I thought he made some great plays with his legs and some great throws tonight.” 

Tieri also said that the two quarterback system for the Hatters is a major piece for them, “I thought Patrick had a great week last week, so it is a prime example of why I’m doing what I’m doing at the quarterback position.”

On defense, the Hatters were led by Boston College-bound Jah Joyner who he had three tackles and five sacks. Coach Tieri said that Joyner silenced his critics with that performance. 

“I think Jah Joyner, if he has any critics and anyone calling him overrated, I think he put all of that to bed.” 

The rest of the Hatters defense held the Vikings in their own end for most of the game, even without one of their leaders, Kile Jackson, who was out with a back injury. 

“I thought our coaches did a great job of preparing the game plan this week and our kids went out and we had the best practice we’ve had all season. We felt so confident because of how we practiced. It was a culmination of that,” Tieri said.

The Hatters will get ready for Trumbull during their bye week. They will kick off against Trumbull 6p.m.  in Brookfield on Saturday, October 19th.

“When They See Us” is an incredibly chilling Netflix Original based on the true stories of Harlem’s 1989 case involving The Central Park Five. 

When a young female jogger went out for her regular late night run through Central Park in 1989 and was mysteriously found fighting for her life in the bushes, chaos ensued. In 2003, 14 years after the attack, Trisha Meili came forward, confessing to being the lady jogger from the infamous case.

Left for dead after being sexually assaulted and beaten, the lady jogger had no recollection of her attack. Luckily for the NYPD, a large group of teenagers had been “wildin’ out” that very same night. 

The detectives and NYPD were determined to find suspects and were sure that the boys out in the park the same night had everything to do with the jogger case. The NYPD eventually identified what they believed to be the five suspects and were determined to win their case. Only, the five boys that they had caught, were not their suspects after all.

Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise are the names of the five wrongfully convicted men once known as The Central Park Five. Today, they are remembered as The Exonerated Five. 

In the Netflix Original Series “When They See Us”, the true stories and personal hardships of the five men are told in their rawest forms. 

The public eye is exposed to the real life injustice that occurred more than 20 years ago. Not only are viewers given an inside look into the lives lead by each man within jail, but what their lives were like prior to the incident.

After recently watching the 2019-2020 Emmy Awards and seeing actor Jharrel Jerome win Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series, my attention was brought back to the Netflix Original. I had to watch it.

The moment “When They See Us” first came out this past July, the media was booming. People of all ages, whether they were alive when the case took place or not, were both surprised and impressed by the show’s honestly and grit. The Exonerated Five had not been forgotten, but remembered almost all too well. 

People were eager to get their hands on the four-episode series in hopes that they too, would find out the secret schemes that took place behind the scenes of this groundbreaking criminal justice scandal. Now, after finally watching and completing the series, I have been exposed to the hardships and struggles each man had gone through as only children and almost feel responsible for what had happened.

“When They See Us” opened my eyes to the hatred spread throughout the world whether it may be influential/well-known people or not and has proved to me that my voice is worth something. Seeing the way in which all five boys had originally reacted to their predicament, refusing to go against what they believed to be true, demonstrated a mindset and brave lifestyle that I would like to live when it comes to speaking my truth and standing up for my beliefs.

The four-part series has been one of the most impactful shows I have ever seen before and not only did I watch the series as a show, but inspected each episode and scene as a piece of art.

The motives behind director Ava DuVernay’s creation was made evident as one watches the actors and situations gradually grew more intense and heart-wrenching. The five men who live today as The Exonerated Five had an important story to tell the world and it was clear that DuVernay took the responsibility of telling the correct story very seriously.

Netflix’s “When They See Us” is a series that is definitely worth the watch. I would recommend this series based off real life events to strictly mature age groups as it covers serious topics. However, the groundbreaking Emmy Award winning production is an important historical case that all should know of.